what is the best lens?

enri4898 · 07-05-2013, 02:58 AM

hi, I'm italian, I don't speak english very well...
I have a question, what is the best lens for pentax k-x, I do not want to spend so much up to 170 euro or 130 pound.
I'm not looking for a specific lens, I would like a lens of good quality, to take pictures with macro or telephoto, portraits ... I want any kind of lens ... thanks in advance
bye, enry!

atiratha · 07-05-2013, 03:02 AM

Hi and welcome! It is generally good idea to start with a manual 50 mm lens. If you don't mind manual focus, they are generally cheap and good quality. So, any manual Pentax 50 mm is good. 50 mm is a short telephoto on your camera and can also be used for portraits. For general use and "macro" go have a look for Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35/2.4. You will neew an M42 adapter but the lens is awesome.

enri4898 · 07-05-2013, 03:07 AM

okay I have a 18-55 lens, i would like a macro, or a 70-300 mm
are tamron's lens of good quality?

Na Horuk · 07-05-2013, 03:19 AM

Pentax DA 40mm XS (all-round)
Pentax DA 50mm f1.8 (portrait, tele, night photography)
Pentax DFA 100mm f2.8 (true macro, much more tele, portrait)

carrrlangas · 07-05-2013, 03:26 AM

Telephoto: Used DA L 55-300 (L version) (more or less 150 eur)
Macro: SMC Pentax-M 50mm f/4 (more or less 60 euro)
Macro: Tamron 90mm f/2.5 (more or less 80eur)

enri4898 · 07-05-2013, 03:33 AM

thak you!! I hope i will take good photos with this lenses!

bdery · 07-05-2013, 05:27 AM

Hello Enri,

I'm sorry but, to put it bluntly, you are asking for a cheap lens that does everything well. This does not exist. A macro lens can serve for portrait, if the focal length is long enough it can serve as a telephoto, but it won't be cheap. A cheap lens will not be the "best" lens. And even then, "best" is way too vague. Do yuo mean sharp? With nice colours? Fast AF? Compact? A zoom? A prime?

**TER-OR** · 07-05-2013, 05:32 AM

The Tamron 70-300 is nice, but has two serious drawbacks. These are issues which you, as a photographer, can aviod if you are careful.
First, it is a bit soft above 200mm. The solution is to take a photo or two at 180, then zoom farther and take another shot or two. I think it is also a bit sharper around f8 than wide open when fully zoomed.

Second, in high contrast situations, you will find a lot of purple fringing (chromatic abberation). For instance, when taking an image of a bird in a tree branch against a bright sky, you will see a purple shadow on the darker branches and twigs. There's nothing you can do to avoid this, but there are some software tools to help correct it.

The advantages of the 70-300 I found when I used it on my K-10 and later K-5 were a very quick and accurate focus, light weight and good pseudo-macro abilities. I think it is a bit quicker to use than the DA 55-300 I have now, though that is all-around a better lens, though 4X as expensive of course.

If you can find one around $100 and are careful using it, the 70-300 will serve you pretty well. Particularly if you can master the purple fringing elimination software.

That said, a DAL 55-300 is probably well worth the extra money.

enri4898 · 07-05-2013, 06:09 AM

ok, so I should wait a while 'and get a better lens, Pentax brand? are aware of the fact that you can not spend very little and have the same time .. hahaha objectives nikon or canon (which cost less), you can install on pentax? I would agree? focal multipliers are losing a lot of quality to the image?

**TER-OR** · 07-05-2013, 07:11 AM

No, the Nikon and Canon lenses are not usable on Pentax. There are some threads on the forum explaining why.

I wouldn't discourage you to buy the Tamron 70-300 as long as you know its limitations. This will be the case with all lenses, particularly zooms.
That lens served me very well on my K-10. The Purple Fringing wasn't too bad. When I upgraded to the K-5 it was very bad, I know these are very different sensors, which probably was the difference.

I just bought a mid-80s film body from an older gentleman with a Promaster 28-105 lens (bought both for $35). This is a surprisingly quality lens, though very light. Its images are very good, though I need to find a hood which fits.

Keep your eyes open for a bargain. You can use the marketplace here - just put in a couple keywords you want to keep an eye on. This will give you an idea how much lenses cost. For instance you can enter "300" and you'll get the 55-300 and the 70-300 as well as the more expensive 300 primes in your notifications.

You can probably find some used lenses for a good price, but you must be patient.

If you can find an M or A series 50mm f2 or f1.7 you may be surprised how nice they are. They take more work to use, so your kit zoom will probably remain useful. These will perform very well for portraits, though. You'll need to be more technical but I think that's probably to your advantage in portrait photography.

**TER-OR** · 07-05-2013, 07:18 AM

If you are looking for lenses in the used markets, keep an eye on garage sales etc. and look for camera bundles. Sometimes you'll find a nice lens in someone's old kit, and they seem to sell for less if it's just an old set of 50mm and 135mm standard lens kits.

07-05-2013, 02:58 AM	#1
enri4898 New Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 9	what is the best lens? hi, I'm italian, I don't speak english very well... I have a question, what is the best lens for pentax k-x, I do not want to spend so much up to 170 euro or 130 pound. I'm not looking for a specific lens, I would like a lens of good quality, to take pictures with macro or telephoto, portraits ... I want any kind of lens ... thanks in advance bye, enry!

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07-05-2013, 03:02 AM	#2
atiratha Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Photos: Gallery Posts: 121	Hi and welcome! It is generally good idea to start with a manual 50 mm lens. If you don't mind manual focus, they are generally cheap and good quality. So, any manual Pentax 50 mm is good. 50 mm is a short telephoto on your camera and can also be used for portraits. For general use and "macro" go have a look for Carl Zeiss Jena Flektogon 35/2.4. You will neew an M42 adapter but the lens is awesome.

07-05-2013, 03:07 AM	#3
enri4898 New Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 9 Original Poster	okay I have a 18-55 lens, i would like a macro, or a 70-300 mm are tamron's lens of good quality?

07-05-2013, 03:19 AM	#4
Na Horuk Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Slovenia, probably Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 11,186	Pentax DA 40mm XS (all-round) Pentax DA 50mm f1.8 (portrait, tele, night photography) Pentax DFA 100mm f2.8 (true macro, much more tele, portrait)

07-05-2013, 03:26 AM	#5
carrrlangas Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Joensuu (Finland) Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,761	Telephoto: Used DA L 55-300 (L version) (more or less 150 eur) Macro: SMC Pentax-M 50mm f/4 (more or less 60 euro) Macro: Tamron 90mm f/2.5 (more or less 80eur)

07-05-2013, 03:33 AM	#6
enri4898 New Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 9 Original Poster	thak you!! I hope i will take good photos with this lenses!

07-05-2013, 05:27 AM	#7
bdery Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Quebec city, Canada Photos: Gallery Posts: 9,357	Hello Enri, I'm sorry but, to put it bluntly, you are asking for a cheap lens that does everything well. This does not exist. A macro lens can serve for portrait, if the focal length is long enough it can serve as a telephoto, but it won't be cheap. A cheap lens will not be the "best" lens. And even then, "best" is way too vague. Do yuo mean sharp? With nice colours? Fast AF? Compact? A zoom? A prime?

07-05-2013, 05:32 AM	#8
TER-OR Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Dundee, IL Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,699	The Tamron 70-300 is nice, but has two serious drawbacks. These are issues which you, as a photographer, can aviod if you are careful. First, it is a bit soft above 200mm. The solution is to take a photo or two at 180, then zoom farther and take another shot or two. I think it is also a bit sharper around f8 than wide open when fully zoomed. Second, in high contrast situations, you will find a lot of purple fringing (chromatic abberation). For instance, when taking an image of a bird in a tree branch against a bright sky, you will see a purple shadow on the darker branches and twigs. There's nothing you can do to avoid this, but there are some software tools to help correct it. The advantages of the 70-300 I found when I used it on my K-10 and later K-5 were a very quick and accurate focus, light weight and good pseudo-macro abilities. I think it is a bit quicker to use than the DA 55-300 I have now, though that is all-around a better lens, though 4X as expensive of course. If you can find one around $100 and are careful using it, the 70-300 will serve you pretty well. Particularly if you can master the purple fringing elimination software. That said, a DAL 55-300 is probably well worth the extra money.

07-05-2013, 06:09 AM	#9
enri4898 New Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 9 Original Poster	ok, so I should wait a while 'and get a better lens, Pentax brand? are aware of the fact that you can not spend very little and have the same time .. hahaha objectives nikon or canon (which cost less), you can install on pentax? I would agree? focal multipliers are losing a lot of quality to the image?

07-05-2013, 07:11 AM	#10
TER-OR Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Dundee, IL Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,699	No, the Nikon and Canon lenses are not usable on Pentax. There are some threads on the forum explaining why. I wouldn't discourage you to buy the Tamron 70-300 as long as you know its limitations. This will be the case with all lenses, particularly zooms. That lens served me very well on my K-10. The Purple Fringing wasn't too bad. When I upgraded to the K-5 it was very bad, I know these are very different sensors, which probably was the difference. I just bought a mid-80s film body from an older gentleman with a Promaster 28-105 lens (bought both for $35). This is a surprisingly quality lens, though very light. Its images are very good, though I need to find a hood which fits. Keep your eyes open for a bargain. You can use the marketplace here - just put in a couple keywords you want to keep an eye on. This will give you an idea how much lenses cost. For instance you can enter "300" and you'll get the 55-300 and the 70-300 as well as the more expensive 300 primes in your notifications. You can probably find some used lenses for a good price, but you must be patient. If you can find an M or A series 50mm f2 or f1.7 you may be surprised how nice they are. They take more work to use, so your kit zoom will probably remain useful. These will perform very well for portraits, though. You'll need to be more technical but I think that's probably to your advantage in portrait photography.

07-05-2013, 07:18 AM	#11
TER-OR Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Dundee, IL Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,699	If you are looking for lenses in the used markets, keep an eye on garage sales etc. and look for camera bundles. Sometimes you'll find a nice lens in someone's old kit, and they seem to sell for less if it's just an old set of 50mm and 135mm standard lens kits.